Earth Angel (Angels and Seers: Book One) by Stephanie Woods
Chapter 14
Sam looks at me through heavily lidded eyes across our table at the diner. I don’t think he got as much sleep last night as he appeared to. If he did, it was marred by bad dreams. He isn’t fully rested, but he’s doing his best to not show it. I know he’s thinking about what comes next and how we’re going to pull it off.
A waitress comes and brings two cups of coffee, heavily sugared and with lots of cream. She thinks they’re both for me, since she can’t see Sam. He’s raised his vibration back to normal, feeling the need to stretch his wings, and confident this place is too remote for Jonathan’s spies to have reached it yet. At his usual vibration, I’m the only one in the diner who knows he’s there.
The heavily sweetened coffee the waitress brings isn’t something I’d normally drink. Soymilk with stevia or honey in a cup of organic coffee is the only way to go as far as I’m concerned. But today, it seems appropriate to indulge in a little junk. We deserve it. We’re about to embark on a war, for God’s sake. A little sugar to get us going can’t hurt.
Besides, I think Sam will like it better this way. He does. He looks around to make sure no one is watching us, since what they would see is a coffee cup raise itself into the air. Then, he takes a sip and smiles at me, his first genuine smile since we arrived in Vermont three days ago. It’s nice to know he can still find joy in things.
I told him of Kira’s departure before we came to the diner, as well as her declaration of his new responsibility. He took it in stride. In fact, he told me he was surprised she hadn’t left earlier. Once he declared his intentions to protect me out loud, her role in my life this time around was effectively over. He knew what he was doing when he spoke those words, and he knew what they would mean to Kira. Taking my hand and looking me in the eyes with a plain honesty that was so pure it was almost painful to see, he assured me he had no regrets. I believed him. I still do.
“I’m not going to be some shrinking violet or damsel in distress, you know,” I assured him. “I intend to be just as much a guardian to you as you are to me. If anyone wants to get to you, they’ll have to go through me, and I promise you I won’t make it easy for them.”
He started to protest. Of course he did. It is in his nature, and I could see the objection in his eyes, the words forming on his lips. Then, he just started to laugh. “I guess you do have a bit of the warrior in you, Lucy McDonald. And since there’s no manual for me to follow in being a guardian angel to you, I suppose there’s nothing to stop you from being the same to me. Truly, I believe you’re capable of it. The archangels wouldn’t have chosen you if you weren’t able, and you’ve already shown signs of the great power of which they spoke. We’ll bring more powers out in your training, I’m sure. Besides, after you snatched the blade from Jonathan, I knew you could do anything you put your mind to.”
“I’m glad you realize it,” I said, graciously, smiling with him. “I’m surprising myself a lot lately, to tell you the truth. I’m doing things I never imagined doing, and they’re coming easily to me. I’m kind of excited to start exploring what else I can do.”
“I’m sure you’ll be spectacular,” Sam said, genuinely. “But remember, I will always do my best to put myself first in the line of danger where you’re concerned.”
“Only if you beat me to the front of the line,” I assured him.
We absently held each other’s hands then, and it was like we were shaking on it.
Now, at the diner, we wait. We’re there a little early to make sure we don’t miss our appointment. Neither of us is very hungry, so the coffee is holding us over until John and Linda arrive. As promised, they are right on time, walking in the door at noon on the dot.
I recognize them both in an instant. They don’t look any different than anyone else in the place. They’re typical Vermonters, wearing jeans, black t-shirts with rock band logos on them, and open-toed leather sandals. With practically matching long black hair and pale skin, they could be twins, and for all I know, they are. However, the giveaway to their identity is their piercing, emerald eyes. I know those eyes. They are the same as mine, my mothers, my brothers’, and my grandmother’s. They’re seer eyes, part of our special connection to the angelic world. No one else has eyes like ours. The angels have their unique, giveaway eyes; so do we, it seems.
They spot us right away, and immediately walk over to our table, their little guardian angels fluttering easily above their shoulders. I let out an involuntary wistful sigh and absently feel my own shoulder, rubbing it gently as they approach. Since Kira left, my awareness of everyone else’s guardian angels has become painfully acute. I notice them on everyone like never before, whereas in the past, they’d mainly been a part of the normal scenery of everyday things. Now, I feel Kira’s loss quite keenly as I observe everyone else silently and obliviously co-existing with their guardian angels. I know Sam is supposed to be my new guardian, but it’s not the same. True guardians are so different from Earth Angels. Having him there is a comfort, the best in the world, but it’s no substitute for Kira. I miss her.
I shake myself out of my reverie as John and Linda approach us. They are both of medium height, slender and muscular, in their late 30’s to mid-40’s, I’d guess. Both of them smile at us as they get closer to our table. I hope this means they will be friendly and amenable to working with us.
“Lucy and Sam?” Linda speaks first, her voice soft and light, with definite warmth and friendliness behind it.
“That’s us,” I say, my voice sounding hollow and far away after so much silence over the past few days. I motion for Sam to slide over and he does. John slips in beside him and Linda sits beside me. “Thank you for coming.”
“We rarely get direct messages from other angels through our guardians,” John says, his face open and welcoming. “It seemed important that we meet with you.”
“Have you ever met any others seers beyond your own family?” I can’t help it. I have to ask. It isn’t at all pertinent to what we needed to discuss, but the curiosity is too strong shake off.
“No,” Linda says, shaking her head. “But we know you exist.”
“My family personally, or just other seers in general?”
“We know about the seven original families,” John clarifies, “but you are the first of them we’ve met in person.”
“Ok,” I nod. “I just found out about the seven families a few days ago. I knew there were other seers, but I’d never met any besides my relatives. This is virgin territory for me.”
“Us, too,” John says. “Our understanding is most of the seer families are far removed from the truth of their heritage. They know they can see angels, but not much else. We’re lucky that our relatives kept track of things through all these centuries. Our oral histories tell the whole story.”
“Like about angel magic?”
“Exactly.”
“I’m not really sure what we can do to help you,” Linda blurts out, frowning. I quickly assess her as friendly, but cautious. It’s a good thing to be, especially in this kind of situation. She’s smart to be guarded. She still doesn’t have the full story, and has no idea what we’re asking of her.
“Did your guardians not explain the situation?” Sam asks, surprised.
“Only vaguely,” John jumps in, trying to mask what he apparently feels is his sister’s rudeness. “The thing is, we’re not exactly sure what’s going on. All we know is our guardians told us they got a message from yours, and that you needed to meet with us to talk about a coming war. We’ve heard talk of rumors of a dangerous angel in the area from our own guardians, and passing Messenger and Nature Angels. But so far, they’re just rumors. We have no other details beyond those.”
“Oh, they’re not rumors, believe me,” I assure them.
Sam and I give them a rundown on the situation with Jonathan and the apocalyptic possibilities for the Earth, and indeed, the universe, if he should succeed in his plans.
“The archangels say Sam a
nd I are the only beings standing in his way,” I explain. “That’s why they killed my fiancé, so I would be focused on the mission. Jonathan doesn’t know Sam and I are supposed to lead the resistance against him, as far as we know, but he does know Sam is the only angel to stand up to him and live to tell about it. That is enough reason for him to go out of his way to eliminate Sam. And he knows I’m helping him now, so he’ll be looking for me, too. He knows what I look like and he knows my energy signature, but he doesn’t know my name yet. Getting the blade makes it harder for him to find Sam, and me by association. But he’s got spies everywhere, and will probably find us eventually. While he’s looking, we need to recruit as many other angels and seers as we can, to form an army to stop him. We thought being up here in a remote part of Vermont, with a seer family who has more information on seer heritage than we do, would be the best place to start.”
Linda and John are silent for a moment, but they do some fascinating non-verbal communication with each other using their eyes and facial expressions. It’s like a body language Morse code. I wish I could interpret it. Sam watches them, too, his face plastered with curiosity.
Finally, Linda speaks, addressing both Sam and I equally. “We can help you.”
I breathe an audible sigh of relief. I didn’t even know I was tense until that moment, but the feeling of relaxation intense.
Sam, too, looks visibly eased.
“How?” I ask.
“We can hide you,” Linda says determinedly, a plan apparently already formed in her mind. “There is a spell that will let us shield both you and Sam from other angels. It will keep Jonathan and his minions from finding you, as your energy signatures will be imperceptible to them, and to all other angels in the universe. You’ll have to stay in our village, though, since they can still recognize the two of you on sight. In the meantime, we can send out a call to arms to the angels we know in the area, and through our guardians. They will spread the word to the angels they know, and so on down the angel network, until even angels who are far away across the universe know about what is going on here. We’ll also use our guardians to get the message to other seers. Once humans and angels start coming, and we think they will, we can create a hidden training camp in our town that Jonathan will never find.”
“Will you use magic to hide the camp, too?”
“Of course. It’s a spell that hasn’t been used for centuries, but we still have the instructions. It should work.”
“Won’t other people in your village notice something going on, with all the new arrivals and military training?”
John shakes his head. “The village is a small one, with only about 150 people in it, and they’re all related to us. Seers. The village is even called London, after our last name. It’s on the edge of the woods, on the Canadian border, with plenty of room to expand, if necessary, without attracting the attention of neighboring towns.”
“A seer village!” I exclaim, astounded at our good luck. This must be meant to be. “That’s incredible!”
“Why would you do this for us?” Sam asks, genuinely curious. “We’re strangers to you.”
“But you’re not,” Linda insists. “Our family lore includes the stories from the time you stayed with our ancestors during the War of 1812, and how you helped America win. We grew up hearing tales of Prince Sam, heir to the Earth Angel kingdom. And angels and seers are supposed to work together. It’s part of our respective jobs.”
“Not only that,” John adds, “but Jonathan is a threat to us all. As seers, and as residents of the planet, we’re obligated to work with you to ensure he doesn’t succeed.”
“I’m sure other angels will come, but do you think any seers will?” Sam asks. “So few still know what they truly are anymore.”
“Of course they’ll come. The desire to help is ingrained in seers,” Linda says. “You’ve probably felt it yourself, Lucy. What do you do for a living?”
“I’m a Kindergarten teacher.”
“See? Right there. You are ingrained with the inborn desire to help others. Of course, those who can’t see angels can be born with this desire, too. But seers always have it. It’s part of our nature.”
I ponder this for a moment. My family has a long history of community service. My grandfather served in Korea and Vietnam, and, though not a seer, has been involved in veterans’ organizations ever since. No wonder my grandmother fell in love with him; he is just like her. My grandmother works with various charities, and has since I’ve known her. So did my mother. Both of my brothers give liberally of their time and money to charitable causes, take in homeless strangers, and teach their children to do the same. James even started his own charity to help those who are going hungry in the community, and won a local humanitarian award for it. I was in the Peace Corps, and part of my attraction to Harry was his commitment to community service. It seems the desire to do good things for others and help make the world a better place really is part of the seer heritage, as well as the non-seer part of my family.
It would certainly explain why I was so eager to jump into fighting a war for the planet, and ultimately the universe, when I know nothing about fighting and have always been a committed pacifist. It would also explain why the desire to kill Jonathan boiled in my blood from the moment I saw how horribly he injured Sam. Protect the planet, protect the people, protect the angels. It could be the seer motto.
“So they will come because they feel that’s what they’re meant to do?” Sam asks. He shoots a look at me. I know he’s thinking this explains everything about my own attitude.
Linda nods. “They will come. And we will teach them as we will teach you. A meeting like this should have happened centuries ago. It is high time all the families re-learn who they really are, and what they can do.”
“Do you think we can take down Jonathan and his army?” I ask.
“That remains to be seen,” John says. “We don’t know how strong he is yet, or how big his numbers are compared to what we’ll build. He has a head start on us, but probably not by much. All we can do is try, and we must all be committed to the cause.”
“And if we’re understanding you right,” Linda continues, “the longer Sam stays out in the open, the better chance there is of Jonathan finding you both.”
“That’s true,” Sam says, taking a small sip of coffee. “As we said, his spies could be anywhere. Even without the blade in his possession, we still have to be careful and watch out for him.”
“You’re too important to take any kind of risk,” Linda says decisively. “John will collect your things from your hotel and check out for you. Lucy, you and Sam will come with me back to our village, and John will meet us there. We need to get the two of you cloaked immediately. Even a small chance is too much of a chance to take with you. You’re the leaders here. The archangels decreed it, and that means something. You need a secure base of operations, and we can provide that to you.”
I glance at Sam. Should we trust them? I instinctively feel they are trustworthy, and we should do as they say. But I will go with whatever Sam wants to do.
Sam nods back at me, understanding my unspoken question. He wants to get started building a realistic defense against Jonathan as soon as possible. He will go. And I will go with him.
“Then let’s do it,” I say, throwing a ten dollar bill down on the table to cover the coffee and a tip. “It’s time Jonathan learned not to mess with the seers and angels of planet Earth.”
Sam looks at me through heavily lidded eyes across our table at the diner. I don’t think he got as much sleep last night as he appeared to. If he did, it was marred by bad dreams. He isn’t fully rested, but he’s doing his best to not show it. I know he’s thinking about what comes next and how we’re going to pull it off.
A waitress comes and brings two cups of coffee, heavily sugared and with lots of cream. She thinks they’re both for me, since she can’t see Sam. He’s raised his vibration back to normal, feeling the need to stretch his wings, and confident this place is too remote for Jonathan’s spies to have reached it yet. At his usual vibration, I’m the only one in the diner who knows he’s there.
The heavily sweetened coffee the waitress brings isn’t something I’d normally drink. Soymilk with stevia or honey in a cup of organic coffee is the only way to go as far as I’m concerned. But today, it seems appropriate to indulge in a little junk. We deserve it. We’re about to embark on a war, for God’s sake. A little sugar to get us going can’t hurt.
Besides, I think Sam will like it better this way. He does. He looks around to make sure no one is watching us, since what they would see is a coffee cup raise itself into the air. Then, he takes a sip and smiles at me, his first genuine smile since we arrived in Vermont three days ago. It’s nice to know he can still find joy in things.
I told him of Kira’s departure before we came to the diner, as well as her declaration of his new responsibility. He took it in stride. In fact, he told me he was surprised she hadn’t left earlier. Once he declared his intentions to protect me out loud, her role in my life this time around was effectively over. He knew what he was doing when he spoke those words, and he knew what they would mean to Kira. Taking my hand and looking me in the eyes with a plain honesty that was so pure it was almost painful to see, he assured me he had no regrets. I believed him. I still do.
“I’m not going to be some shrinking violet or damsel in distress, you know,” I assured him. “I intend to be just as much a guardian to you as you are to me. If anyone wants to get to you, they’ll have to go through me, and I promise you I won’t make it easy for them.”
He started to protest. Of course he did. It is in his nature, and I could see the objection in his eyes, the words forming on his lips. Then, he just started to laugh. “I guess you do have a bit of the warrior in you, Lucy McDonald. And since there’s no manual for me to follow in being a guardian angel to you, I suppose there’s nothing to stop you from being the same to me. Truly, I believe you’re capable of it. The archangels wouldn’t have chosen you if you weren’t able, and you’ve already shown signs of the great power of which they spoke. We’ll bring more powers out in your training, I’m sure. Besides, after you snatched the blade from Jonathan, I knew you could do anything you put your mind to.”
“I’m glad you realize it,” I said, graciously, smiling with him. “I’m surprising myself a lot lately, to tell you the truth. I’m doing things I never imagined doing, and they’re coming easily to me. I’m kind of excited to start exploring what else I can do.”
“I’m sure you’ll be spectacular,” Sam said, genuinely. “But remember, I will always do my best to put myself first in the line of danger where you’re concerned.”
“Only if you beat me to the front of the line,” I assured him.
We absently held each other’s hands then, and it was like we were shaking on it.
Now, at the diner, we wait. We’re there a little early to make sure we don’t miss our appointment. Neither of us is very hungry, so the coffee is holding us over until John and Linda arrive. As promised, they are right on time, walking in the door at noon on the dot.
I recognize them both in an instant. They don’t look any different than anyone else in the place. They’re typical Vermonters, wearing jeans, black t-shirts with rock band logos on them, and open-toed leather sandals. With practically matching long black hair and pale skin, they could be twins, and for all I know, they are. However, the giveaway to their identity is their piercing, emerald eyes. I know those eyes. They are the same as mine, my mothers, my brothers’, and my grandmother’s. They’re seer eyes, part of our special connection to the angelic world. No one else has eyes like ours. The angels have their unique, giveaway eyes; so do we, it seems.
They spot us right away, and immediately walk over to our table, their little guardian angels fluttering easily above their shoulders. I let out an involuntary wistful sigh and absently feel my own shoulder, rubbing it gently as they approach. Since Kira left, my awareness of everyone else’s guardian angels has become painfully acute. I notice them on everyone like never before, whereas in the past, they’d mainly been a part of the normal scenery of everyday things. Now, I feel Kira’s loss quite keenly as I observe everyone else silently and obliviously co-existing with their guardian angels. I know Sam is supposed to be my new guardian, but it’s not the same. True guardians are so different from Earth Angels. Having him there is a comfort, the best in the world, but it’s no substitute for Kira. I miss her.
I shake myself out of my reverie as John and Linda approach us. They are both of medium height, slender and muscular, in their late 30’s to mid-40’s, I’d guess. Both of them smile at us as they get closer to our table. I hope this means they will be friendly and amenable to working with us.
“Lucy and Sam?” Linda speaks first, her voice soft and light, with definite warmth and friendliness behind it.
“That’s us,” I say, my voice sounding hollow and far away after so much silence over the past few days. I motion for Sam to slide over and he does. John slips in beside him and Linda sits beside me. “Thank you for coming.”
“We rarely get direct messages from other angels through our guardians,” John says, his face open and welcoming. “It seemed important that we meet with you.”
“Have you ever met any others seers beyond your own family?” I can’t help it. I have to ask. It isn’t at all pertinent to what we needed to discuss, but the curiosity is too strong shake off.
“No,” Linda says, shaking her head. “But we know you exist.”
“My family personally, or just other seers in general?”
“We know about the seven original families,” John clarifies, “but you are the first of them we’ve met in person.”
“Ok,” I nod. “I just found out about the seven families a few days ago. I knew there were other seers, but I’d never met any besides my relatives. This is virgin territory for me.”
“Us, too,” John says. “Our understanding is most of the seer families are far removed from the truth of their heritage. They know they can see angels, but not much else. We’re lucky that our relatives kept track of things through all these centuries. Our oral histories tell the whole story.”
“Like about angel magic?”
“Exactly.”
“I’m not really sure what we can do to help you,” Linda blurts out, frowning. I quickly assess her as friendly, but cautious. It’s a good thing to be, especially in this kind of situation. She’s smart to be guarded. She still doesn’t have the full story, and has no idea what we’re asking of her.
“Did your guardians not explain the situation?” Sam asks, surprised.
“Only vaguely,” John jumps in, trying to mask what he apparently feels is his sister’s rudeness. “The thing is, we’re not exactly sure what’s going on. All we know is our guardians told us they got a message from yours, and that you needed to meet with us to talk about a coming war. We’ve heard talk of rumors of a dangerous angel in the area from our own guardians, and passing Messenger and Nature Angels. But so far, they’re just rumors. We have no other details beyond those.”
“Oh, they’re not rumors, believe me,” I assure them.
Sam and I give them a rundown on the situation with Jonathan and the apocalyptic possibilities for the Earth, and indeed, the universe, if he should succeed in his plans.
“The archangels say Sam a
Linda and John are silent for a moment, but they do some fascinating non-verbal communication with each other using their eyes and facial expressions. It’s like a body language Morse code. I wish I could interpret it. Sam watches them, too, his face plastered with curiosity.
Finally, Linda speaks, addressing both Sam and I equally. “We can help you.”
I breathe an audible sigh of relief. I didn’t even know I was tense until that moment, but the feeling of relaxation intense.
Sam, too, looks visibly eased.
“How?” I ask.
“We can hide you,” Linda says determinedly, a plan apparently already formed in her mind. “There is a spell that will let us shield both you and Sam from other angels. It will keep Jonathan and his minions from finding you, as your energy signatures will be imperceptible to them, and to all other angels in the universe. You’ll have to stay in our village, though, since they can still recognize the two of you on sight. In the meantime, we can send out a call to arms to the angels we know in the area, and through our guardians. They will spread the word to the angels they know, and so on down the angel network, until even angels who are far away across the universe know about what is going on here. We’ll also use our guardians to get the message to other seers. Once humans and angels start coming, and we think they will, we can create a hidden training camp in our town that Jonathan will never find.”
“Will you use magic to hide the camp, too?”
“Of course. It’s a spell that hasn’t been used for centuries, but we still have the instructions. It should work.”
“Won’t other people in your village notice something going on, with all the new arrivals and military training?”
John shakes his head. “The village is a small one, with only about 150 people in it, and they’re all related to us. Seers. The village is even called London, after our last name. It’s on the edge of the woods, on the Canadian border, with plenty of room to expand, if necessary, without attracting the attention of neighboring towns.”
“A seer village!” I exclaim, astounded at our good luck. This must be meant to be. “That’s incredible!”
“Why would you do this for us?” Sam asks, genuinely curious. “We’re strangers to you.”
“But you’re not,” Linda insists. “Our family lore includes the stories from the time you stayed with our ancestors during the War of 1812, and how you helped America win. We grew up hearing tales of Prince Sam, heir to the Earth Angel kingdom. And angels and seers are supposed to work together. It’s part of our respective jobs.”
“Not only that,” John adds, “but Jonathan is a threat to us all. As seers, and as residents of the planet, we’re obligated to work with you to ensure he doesn’t succeed.”
“I’m sure other angels will come, but do you think any seers will?” Sam asks. “So few still know what they truly are anymore.”
“Of course they’ll come. The desire to help is ingrained in seers,” Linda says. “You’ve probably felt it yourself, Lucy. What do you do for a living?”
“I’m a Kindergarten teacher.”
“See? Right there. You are ingrained with the inborn desire to help others. Of course, those who can’t see angels can be born with this desire, too. But seers always have it. It’s part of our nature.”
I ponder this for a moment. My family has a long history of community service. My grandfather served in Korea and Vietnam, and, though not a seer, has been involved in veterans’ organizations ever since. No wonder my grandmother fell in love with him; he is just like her. My grandmother works with various charities, and has since I’ve known her. So did my mother. Both of my brothers give liberally of their time and money to charitable causes, take in homeless strangers, and teach their children to do the same. James even started his own charity to help those who are going hungry in the community, and won a local humanitarian award for it. I was in the Peace Corps, and part of my attraction to Harry was his commitment to community service. It seems the desire to do good things for others and help make the world a better place really is part of the seer heritage, as well as the non-seer part of my family.
It would certainly explain why I was so eager to jump into fighting a war for the planet, and ultimately the universe, when I know nothing about fighting and have always been a committed pacifist. It would also explain why the desire to kill Jonathan boiled in my blood from the moment I saw how horribly he injured Sam. Protect the planet, protect the people, protect the angels. It could be the seer motto.
“So they will come because they feel that’s what they’re meant to do?” Sam asks. He shoots a look at me. I know he’s thinking this explains everything about my own attitude.
Linda nods. “They will come. And we will teach them as we will teach you. A meeting like this should have happened centuries ago. It is high time all the families re-learn who they really are, and what they can do.”
“Do you think we can take down Jonathan and his army?” I ask.
“That remains to be seen,” John says. “We don’t know how strong he is yet, or how big his numbers are compared to what we’ll build. He has a head start on us, but probably not by much. All we can do is try, and we must all be committed to the cause.”
“And if we’re understanding you right,” Linda continues, “the longer Sam stays out in the open, the better chance there is of Jonathan finding you both.”
“That’s true,” Sam says, taking a small sip of coffee. “As we said, his spies could be anywhere. Even without the blade in his possession, we still have to be careful and watch out for him.”
“You’re too important to take any kind of risk,” Linda says decisively. “John will collect your things from your hotel and check out for you. Lucy, you and Sam will come with me back to our village, and John will meet us there. We need to get the two of you cloaked immediately. Even a small chance is too much of a chance to take with you. You’re the leaders here. The archangels decreed it, and that means something. You need a secure base of operations, and we can provide that to you.”
I glance at Sam. Should we trust them? I instinctively feel they are trustworthy, and we should do as they say. But I will go with whatever Sam wants to do.
Sam nods back at me, understanding my unspoken question. He wants to get started building a realistic defense against Jonathan as soon as possible. He will go. And I will go with him.
“Then let’s do it,” I say, throwing a ten dollar bill down on the table to cover the coffee and a tip. “It’s time Jonathan learned not to mess with the seers and angels of planet Earth.”